Safe humanitarian corridor on Siret-Chernivtsi relationship opened, two others in discussion, Red Cross says

The Managing Director of the Romanian Red Cross, Ioan Silviu Lefter, said that following the discussions held with the Romanian and Ukrainian authorities, a safe humanitarian corridor on the Siret-Chernivtsi relationship was opened, being in discussion for the next week two other such corridors, Agerpres reports.

Ioan Silviu Lefter made the remarks in a press conference at the Victoria Palace at the end of the working meeting that Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca had with the representatives of the governmental institutions and those of the non-governmental organizations involved in the management of the refugee situation in Ukraine.

"The Red Cross acts under a special law, we are partners of the government in emergency situations and this is a situation of extreme urgency. We have mobilized in two plans - in the national plan I can say that we have launched a national appeal to collect both products and money to purchase different products and not only, I am referring here also to tents, to the barracks, which we can use both internally and externally. We have mobilized all our branches at all customs points. They're all there. We have mobilized all the branches in the country, which also do collections. Personally I have been in all the customs in the north of the country on several occasions. I can say that I participated with (Suceava County Council's head, ed. n.) Mr. Flutur two weeks ago in a discussion with the governor of the Chernivtsi area and we managed to open a safe humanitarian corridor on the Siret-Chernivtsi relationship. As a result, there are passing through the only humanitarian aid to Ukraine. (...) We are in the discussions of finding some safe corridors to be able to take next week humanitarian convoys to the north, through Sighetu Marmatiei and maybe also to Isaccea, to pass them beyond for the population of Ukraine," said Ioan Silviu Lefter.

He also spoke of the aid sent from several national societies of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent, following the international appeal launched from the Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent.

"I am in a permanent connection with our president, Francesco Roca, so that help has begun to come from the other national societies of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent. So far, 44 trucks have entered Ukraine, 14 from the Romanian Red Cross, the rest from the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in the world. Turkey has entered with many trucks, the Bulgarians have entered, the Greeks have entered, the Italians have entered, the Chinese have entered with aid and we have signals that they will come from many national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. (...) Equally, the Vice-President of the Federation, who is vice-president of the Europe area, was also visiting us, also for assessing the situation. (...) There is a great interest on the part of the Federation to support the Red Cross here and, first of all, the Romanian Government in an effort to bear more easily, let's say, this wave of refugees. At the headquarters of the Red Cross was sent a chief of operations from the Federation, who worked in conflict zones, I am referring here to Syria, Afghanistan, has a great experience in terms of refugees, with six more employees from the Federation. Because, we have to admit, we are well organized, but we have not faced the wide range of problems that this great humanitarian drama offers us," Lefter said.